Tried this last night w/ my pizza:1. AmbullneoVnyds Syrah Howling SantaMariaVlly (65% Z-Block BienNacido/35% Rimrock vnyds; U; 14.5%) Greg Linn/ScottAmes/SantaMaria 2005: Very dark/black color w/ no bricking; very intense blackberry/boysenberry/Syrah rather peppery/cold-climate/spicy some toasty/charred/oak slight alcoholic big/ripe/powerful nose; soft bit alcoholic slight tannic/hard big/ripe/blackberry/boysenberry/Syrah rather peppery/cracked black pepper/cold-climate some toasty/charred/oak flavor; very long bit hot/alcoholic intense blackberry/boysenberry/Syrah some cracked black pepper/cold-climate bit tannic/hard rather structured finish; a big/ripe Syrah but not over-the-top; not showing much evolution and needs another 2-5 yrs; a very good Syrah in the style of the old AndrewMurrays; very attractively priced at $24.00_____________________And a wee BloodyPulpit:1. Ambullneo is a pretty well hidden winery. Started by GregLinn and the winemaker is ScottAmes. Theme of the winery focuses on BullDogs as best I can tell. Originally located at BienNacido vnyd, believe they're now up in ArroyoGrande. Their WebSite (www.AmbullneoVineyards.com) doesn't have a lot of information. Don't see any wines after the '08 vintage, so don't know if they're still in business. I tried this Syrah about 2 yrs ago & really liked it, especially for the price. The Rimrock vnyd is SE of Laetitia, within view of the Pacific. Definitely a cold-climate vnyd, as is BienNacido; which comes thru loud & clear in the wine. Tom

Joshua Kates wrote:Hi Tom,Thanks for the note. Yes, they seem to be about bulldogs. I have the 2007 Ambullneo Vineyards Chardonnay Fang. I realize I haven't tried any yet. I somehow thought it was younger. So yeah, maybe they closed.Best,Josh

Yeah, Josh. Had an e-mail exchange w/ Greg. Ambullneo/Nonno Zito (their Italian theme label) are out of business.Greg is making wines now under his Greg Linn label now. Probably using those same massive btls I would guess.Tom